Spacer for double windows

ABSTRACT

Device for use as a spacer of double windows, comprising a hollow section capable of being filled with a hygroscopic material for use as an intermediate web for the windows having an air space between the panes, wherein the web includes a plurality of air inlet apertures or slits along one surface, directed to the space between the panes.

l nited States Patent 11 1 Westhoft 1 Feb. 11, 1975 1 SPACER FOR DOUBLE WINDOWS [75] Inventor: Josef Westhoff, Wickede, Germany [73] Assignee: Standard Metallwerke GmbH, Werl,

Germany [22] Filed: Jan. 31, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 328,229

[52] US. Cl 138/103, 138/177, 52/172 [51] Int. Cl. F161 9/02 [58] Field of Search 138/37, 103, 177, 178;

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 8/1920 Lee 138/103 X 5/1926 Stewart 4/1939 Hall et a1. 29/1635 UX 3,269,165 8/1966 Anderson 239/566 X 3,438,110 4/1969 Lavallee 29/1635 R X FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,117,028 6/1968 Great Britain 52/172 Primary Examiner-Charles A. Ruehl Attorney, Agent, or FirmAl1isoni C. Collard [57] ABSTRACT Device for use as a spacer of double windows, comprising a hollow section capable of being filled with a hygroscopic material for use as an intermediate web for the windows having an air space between the panes, wherein the web includes a plurality of air inlet apertures or slits along one surface, directed to the space between the panes.

2 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures PATENTED FEB] 1 I975 SHEET 1 0F 3 Fig. 7

mman FEBI H915 SHEET 2 BF 3 Fig 2 2 i r W 6 PATENIEBFEBI H975 sum 3 or 3 m ME SPACER FOR DOUBLE WINDOWS The present invention relates to a device for use as a spacer between double window panes, comprising a hollow section, more particularly a hemispherical section which can be filled with drying agents.

In order to produce double or multi-glazing panes having air spaces, hollow metal sections are required with cavities filled with air drying agents. These hollow sections form a frame or intermediate web between two adjacent glass panes. Usually, hemispherical aluminum sections are used for this purpose, and are surrounded by a resilient sealing compound, which durably connects the glass panes together without causing tensional stress and seals the air space between the two panes. In order to prevent the inside surfaces of these panes from misting up, dry air has to be provided in the space between the panes. The hollow sections are therefore filled with hygroscopic agents and have air inlet apertures formed in their inwardly facing surfaces.

A hemispherical aluminum section is conventionally used in which bores are formed in the flat web surface. In order to provide a sufficient air circulation, a certain minimum overall cross-section of the air inlet apertures is necessary. On the other hand, however, the air inlet apertures should be relatively small, since it is necessary to prevent any granular hygroscopic agent from escaping into the space between the two panes of glass. It has been found that the use of a small number of bores of small diameter in the flattened rib surface do not provide sufficient air circulation or even sufficient drying of the air. If a large number of small bores are used, additional boring operations are required which, in turn, increase production costs.

Therefore, a substantially hemispherical hollow section has been proposed which has a continuous, narrow longitudinal slot in the flattened rib portion. Production of such sections is effected by inwardly folding over the outer surface to form an almost continuous slot. It is, however, difficult to obtain a continuous slot having a constant aperture width of the order of 0.15 mm by conventional methods. Continuously slit, hollow sections, however, suffer from the disadvantage that they have a low torsional resistance. A frame which has been formed therefrom as an intermediate web for double glazing panes therefore possesses only a low diagonal rigidity.

In the present invention, a hollow section is provided which has sufficient resistance to torsion, the air inlet openings or slits of which have a sufficient crosssectional area to enable sufficient circulation of air. The section may be produced in a simple manner. A hollow section is provided capable of being filled with air drying agents for use as an intermediate web for double glazing panes having an air space between the panes. The air inlet apertures are provided in one surface of a web, consisting of longitudinal slits. The section is preferably substantially D-shaped or hemispherical, and is made of aluminum.

The longitudinal slits are formed by pressing inwardly on the web so that one end of each pressed out portion is sheared off from the body of web. This shearing pro vides a longitudinal slit with a portion which extends almost vertically through the surface of the web. In this hollow section, the torsional resistance is substantially equal to that of a closed section. The slits are formed within very close tolerances. The slots are pressed out, or cut longitudinally in the blank.

There may also be an additional step of drawing the slotted hollow section through an aperture corresponding to the desired external outline of the section.

It is therefore an object according to the present invention to provide hollow sections for use as intermediate ribs for double windows, which are simple in design, inexpensive in cost and reliable in. operation.

Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in connection with the accompanying drawings which disclose exemplary embodiments of the invention. It is to be understood, however, that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration only and not as a definition of the limits and scope of the invention.

In the drawings wherein similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several views:

FIG. 1 is a side view, partially in section, of an apparatus for producing a hollow section in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line l-I of FIG.

FIG. 3 shows a plan view ofa hollow section in accordance with the invention; and

FIG. 4 is a section taken along line IIII of FIG. 3 and further shows two lateral window panes as well as a hygroscopic or air-drying agent within the hollow section.

In FIGS. 3 and 4, there is shown a hollow section 1 which is intended for use as an intermediate web for double or multi-glazing panes. This section is substantially hemispherical and has a flattened web surface In, which faces inwardly. Longitudinal air inlet slits 2 are formed in web surface la. The portions of the web surface between the slits are denoted by reference 3. Depending upon the desired strength characteristics of the section, or upon the length of air inlet slit required, web portions 3 may be varied in size to produce slits 2. Web surface la is pressed inwards and partially cut away. The inwardly pressed portion 6 is therefore no longer in contact with a portion 5 of web surface 1a. Between these two portions 5 and 6, a narrow, substantially vertical slot 4 is formed. After completion, the spacer device, constituted by the hollow section 1, can be filled with a hydroscopic or air-drying agent as schematically shown in FIG. 4 at lb. The device can be used between two window panes ofa double-pane structure, as shown in the same figure at 25a and 25b.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show an apparatus for producing the partially slit, hollow sections. A hemispherical aluminum section 1 is drawn over a fixed mandrel 9. This mandrel is provided with an abutment 7. This abutment 7 has a longitudinal guide groove 8 having a shape corresponding to the external surface of hollow section 1. Pivotally mounted, vertically above abutment 7, is a cutting roller 12. This cutting roller has a plurality of cutter segments'l3 disposed around its circumference. Between segments 13, spaces 14 are provided, the size of which correspond to the desired length of web portions 3 on the finished sections 1.

To accommodate cutter segments 13, a longitudinal groove 10 is provided in mandrel 9. The cross-section of groove 10 corresponds substantially to the crosssection of cutter segments 13. This groove 10 tapers at one end into a radiused inlet surface 9a.

Cutting roller 12 is guided and located between two blocks 11, and is freely rotatably mounted by means of a bolt or pin on a fork 16. Fork 16 is mounted in pendulum fashion, in an articulated pedestal bearing 18 by means of a corresponding bolt or pin 17. These mountings are inclined relative to the device used for drawing tubular section 1 over mandrel 9 so that the dead weight of cutting roller 12 and the weight of fork 16 always act on the hollow section 1 to be slit. The pivotal range of fork 16, and thus of roller 12, may be altered by means of an adjustable screw 21. Screw 21 is mounted in a holder and strikes against free end 24 of the fork. Both pedestal bearing 18 and holder 20 are connected to a frame 19 of the apparatus.

The slitting of the hollow section by means of the above-mentioned apparatus is performed as follows:

By means of a drawing device, not shown, the hollow section 1 is drawn over the mandrel 9 provided with the groove 10. During this drawing movement of section 1, the cutting roller 12 with its cutter elements 13 is drawn or pressed into the material of section 1 in the region of the abutment 7 due to the inclination of the fork 16. The slit regions 2 are thus formed. Part of web surface 1a is pressed inwardly and partially sheared off. Depending upon the setting of the pivotal range of fork 16 by means ofa defining screw 21, cutter segments 13 penetrate into hollow section 1 or its web surface 1a to a selected depth and form slot 4.

During the drawing movement of hollow section 1, cutting roller 12 is rotated so that the region of each cutter segment 13, the slit regions 2 are formed in the section. During passage of those portions 14 of roller 12 not provided with cutter segments 13 over the section 1, no cutting is effected, thereby leaving the web portions 3 intact.

To enable the external dimensions of hollow section 1 to be respectively controlled and corrected, hollow section 1 is drawn, by means of a drawing iron or die 22, having apertures corresponding to the required external dimensions of hollow section 1.

It is necessary for the hollow section to be supported on all sides in mandrel 9. In this manner, the depth of penetration of the cutter segments can be controlled very accurately. By selecting certain cutter widths and, to a certain extent, the shape of the cutter, any desired cutting depth and length is possible,

While only a single, exemplary embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, it will be obvious that many changes and modifications may be made thereunto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A device for use as a spacer between two airtightly connected glass panes ofa double window. comprising: a pipe-like hollow section adapted to be filled with a drying medium, to be mounted between the glass panes and serving as the distance spacer therefor; one surface of said hollow section comprising a substantially flat web having a plurality of slits formed therein which extend along an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of said hollow section, and flap portions longitudinally oriented to said web, extending therefrom inwardly into the interior of said hollow section and having a longitudinal first out free edge; wherein said web has a second cut free edge closely adjacent but opposite said first cut edge and complementary thereto; and said slits are defined and limited by said first and said second cut edges.

2. The device as defined in claim 1, wherein said hollow section has a substantially D-shaped cross-section; said flap portions are linearly aligned in the center of said flat web, and depend from the latter at an acute angle relative thereto, spaced substantially adjacent said second cut free edge of the web, and only one inwardly extending flap portion is provided at any longitudinal position on said web; a web portion adjacent said second cut free edge is coplanar to said web and constitutes a part thereof; and wherein each of said slits, defined by said first and said second cut edges, comprises a substantially uniform opening substantially smaller than the size of said drying medium.

l l l 

1. A device for use as a spacer between two air-tightly connected glass panes of a double window, comprising: a pipe-like hollow section adapted to be filled with a drying medium, to be mounted between the glass panes and serving as the distance spacer therefor; one surface of said hollow section comprising a substantially flat web having a plurality of slits formed therein which extend along an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of said hollow section, and flap portions longitudinally oriented to said web, extending therefrom inwardly into the interior of said hollow section and having a longitudinal first cut free edge; wherein said web has a second cut free edge closely adjacent but opposite said first cut edge and complementary thereto; and said slits are defined and limited by said first and said second cut edges.
 2. The device as defined in claim 1, wherein said hollow section has a substantially D-shaped cross-section; said flap portions are linearly aligned in the center of said flat web, and depend from the latter at an acute angle relative thereto, spaced substantially adjacent said second cut free edge of the web, and only one inwardly extending flap portion is provided at any longitudinal position on said web; a web portion adjacent said second cut free edge is coplanar to said web and constitutes a part thereof; and wherein each of said slits, defined by said first and said second cut edges, comprises a substantially uniform opening substantially smaller than the size of said drying medium. 